"We simply can't allow differences over individual elements of this plan to prevent us from meeting our responsibilities to solve a long-standing and urgent problem for the American people," Obama said.

It appears now that the public option plan is dead as does a Medicare buy-in scheme offered as a fallback. Political insiders theorize those concessions could be enough to bring independent Sen. Joe Lieberman, I-Conn., back onboard to vote with the Democrats.

Obama is still lobbying Sen. Ben Nelson, D-Neb., for his support. Nelson has demanded a ban on federal abortion funding.